Page 14 of The Temptation
“Don’t give me that look,” I snapped.
“Sorry. You’re right. The problem is my parents, and the lie I might have told them so I can remain in Cincinnati.”
Oh, shit. This was a big deal.
I immediately sat up straight and wiped the pissy expression from my face. He couldn’t leave Cincinnati. A huge chunk of the reason I’d even moved to this city was to be closer to Pierce. If he left now, all my plans would be useless. It wasn’t as if I could pick up and leave the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra now because the man I was chasing decided to move. Besides the fact that I’d signed a contract with them, I wasn’t enough of a douchebag to leave them in the lurch.
“What happened with your parents? Do they want you to leave?” I demanded.
“They’re worried about my lack of a dating life.”
“Your parents are worried you’re not getting laid enough.”
That earned me a glare, but he also seemed relaxed—as if I’d broken the ice just enough. Honestly, it was the most relaxed and sober Pierce had been around me in years, and I was taking it for the small win it was.
“Myyoungerbrother, Archer, is married and has two kids.”
I made a noise and winced. Yeah, now I got it. There was an order for this type of thing. The parents always expected the oldest to go off, get married, and pop out the babies. Sometimes the younger one ran amok and did that first, but the older child usually followed soon after. Pierce was derelict in his duties as the eldest.
That was something I wouldn’t have had to worry about as much if Sawyer had lived. He hadn’t wanted to wait for the family and kids portion of life. I had little doubt he and his brood would have preoccupied my parents for years before they’d gotten around to worrying about me.
However, following his death, things had grown easier, yet in some ways, more complicated. It didn’t feel as if they expected much out of me so long as I stayed alive. On the other hand, they didn’t want me to move far away or do anything unsafe. They weren’t fans of me being gay because they saw that as “choosing to live a more dangerous lifestyle.” It went without saying that college had resulted in a large rift forming between me and my parents. I couldn’t stop living my life just because my brother died. Over the past few years, things really hadn’t improved much, but I tried to make some effort since I was their only son.
“My parents feel that it would be easier for me to find someone to date in Boston. Particularly since I’ve lived in Cincinnati for several years now and not gotten married.”
“What the hell! It’s not like they told you when you moved there was a time limit, right?”
Pierce’s mouth finally pulled into a half grin. “True. I’m guessing they never considered it permanent, and maybe I didn’t either. My family’s firm is out of Boston, and I think deep down, I always planned on returning to take it over.”
“You don’t want to leave, do you?”
“No. Definitely not. I never expected to love it here as much as I do. The city is great, the people are nice, and my friends are here. I’m comfortable here. And that’s the problem…”
I shook my head. It didn’t sound like an issue to me.
“I got so comfortable and happy that I forgot to think about the big picture. That this city was temporary. Now, I’m coming up against the artificial deadline and panicking that it’s all too soon. I don’t want to leave.”
“Have you tried to tell them that you don’t want to go back to Boston?”
Pierce sighed and slumped in his chair a little. “I’ve tried some, but I haven’t pushed the issue because I don’t really know what I want. My dad’s side of the family has been this long lineof lawyers. My great-grandfather started the firm, and growing up, I always wanted to be the next to head it up after my father retired. But I also never envisioned moving permanently out of Boston and finding a new place that I loved more. I’m dragging my feet because I haven’t decided what I want yet.”
“Whether to give up the life you love here or give up the dream you’ve had since you were a kid,” I supplied.
He blinked at me as if he were surprised that I’d managed to get to the heart of his dilemma. “Yeah.”
“Look, it’s obvious to both of us which way I’d vote, but I can try to be a neutral party for a few seconds. There’s no saying that you don’t learn to love living and working in Boston. It’s where you grew up, and you’ll be close to family again. You’ll get your dream.” Pierce shrugged. “But…it’s also important to remember that dreams can fade and change. What looks good when you’re young can dull when viewed through the eyes of an adult. Maybe it’s time to let go of a childhood dream and replace it with an adult one.”
Pierce tilted his head to the side and arched one eyebrow at me, as if silently asking if I was willing to follow my own advice.
“Screw you. I traded my childhood dream for a much filthier adult dream. They both just happen to center on the same person. Aren’t you lucky?”
“So lucky,” he groaned.
“But I’m not the one with the problem right now. You are. I’m assuming you’ve got some kind of plan since you’ve asked to meet me here today.”
“A stupid one,” he muttered. “But it might buy me some time, which is all I really want. Time to figure out my shit before I destroy a bridge that I can’t possibly fix later.”
“Okay…”
